THE AUSTRALIAN BEEKEEPERS’ JOURNAL. 
lo7 
them.” There will always be quantities of 
them as long as sections are used, since it is 
true, that by a sudden bind unexpected ending 
of the honey-harvest by drought, or by too 
much rain, the flow is cut off, which circum- 
stance can not be controlled by the beekeeper. 
This being true without a possible remedy, it 
is only necessary to deal with the problem of 
what shall be done with this uncompleted 
work. Some have advised burning the sections 
and melting the com bs. Now this is bad ad- 
vice, bad economy, and poor judgment. To 
make a fair living for a family out of the 
pursuit of apiculture (in most localities) it is 
wisdom to concede the fact that close, econo- 
mical management must play an important 
part in the business. These partly filled 
sections are the best stock in trade about the 
apiary. When by actual experience I find 
that my bees will enter the sections more 
freely when they contain drawn combs, I 
want starters of comb, and I want them bad, 
say what you may about sections filled with 
foundation. 
My first experience in the use of partly 
filled sections was not satisfactory; and es- 
pecially was this so with those that had been 
pretty well filled out the previous season. 
The honey presented an oldish appearance, 
causing customers to ask, “ Is this not old 
honey ?” 
I will now give my plan of working these 
unfinished sections up into cash. When the 
honey harvest is about closing, and w ork on 
sections is so slow that the loss is becoming 
greater from discoloration than is gained by 
completion, they are at once removed. Those 
completed are put in crates ready for market. 
Those almost finished are sold to any who may 
wish to buy them, at a little less price. What 
are not disposed of in this way are cut out, 
put in pans, filling in the instertices with 
extracted honey taken from the poorer finished 
sections. The pan and all is sold for about 
full price of nice sections, and no trouble to 
do it. The partly filled sections, after being 
nicely cleaned of wax and propolis, are run 
through the extractor, after which they are 
returned to cases as before, and stacked up in 
short tiers. These are placed over or near hives 
at night, to bo cleaned up. They are then 
stored away in a mouse proof place until the 
next season. 
Previous to placing these again over the 
bees, the combs are reduced in thickness so 
that the depth of the cell is not over one- 
fonrth of an inch. To do this nicely and 
speedily I got out a piece of sheet iron, 
smoothed on one side, and just large enough 
to easily go inside the sections. To the four 
corners of this are fastened small rods of iron, 
of a suitable length to permit a small lamp to 
go under the plate. A good heavy block of 
wood, having holes to receive the legs of this 
small table, makes all solid and a nice place 
for the turn]) to rest. Now, by turning on or 
off the flame, the plate is kept at such a 
degree of heat that the comb is quickly 
melted away to the desired thickness. They 
are now placed in the cases, and when the 
surplus room is needed by the bees, these 
seeiions are given to the strongest colonies, 
and at once they go to work on them. After 
the bees have worked on these combs a few 
days, I examined all other colonies ; and 
where any are found slow about starting, I 
take four or five of these sections, bees and 
all, and place them in the centre of the case, 
which will usually start them at once ; but if 
any- colony, for lack of bees or other cause, 
still refuse to go to work, I exchange a full 
ease, which never fails. 
By melting away part of the length of the 
cells, the bees are compelled to add new wax 
in lengthening them out, which, when 
finished, will lie as tine in texture as though 
no old comb had been used. If the honey 
taken from the unfinished sections is not ripe 
enough to be nice, it must be placed in op, n 
vessels in a dry, warm, airy place, where it 
soon become “orthodox” honey. Some will 
advise giving the unfinished sections to light 
colonies. As long as I can get ten to fifteen 
cents for this honey, and granulated-sugar 
syrup for five cents a pound, the latter will be 
used to supply colonies deficient in stores. 
J. A. Buchanan. 
Holliday’s Cove, IV. Va., Nov. 21, LSS7, 
inquirers’ Column. 
American Bee Journal. — What is the 
annual subscription for the American Bee 
Journal, iucluding postage to Australia ?— G. 
j Green. 
The annual subscription of this excellent 
journal is only one dollar (4s.) per auuum, in 
America. The postage, if sent mouthy ria 
San Francisco, will be about 3s. per annum 
extra. It could, we believe, be obtained 
weekly, if desired, through George Neighbour 
and Sons, 1411 Regent Street, London. — Ed. 
Root's 10 Inch Roller Foundation 
Machines.— A subscriber enquires if these 
can be obtained in Australia, and their cost ? 
We find the cost to be about it! or XI for 
the latest patterns. They can be obtained in 
Melbourne, Adelaide, or New Zealand, see 
advertisements. — Ed. 
Mead. — Mr. J. Thacker, Lillimur South, 
asks us to give a receipt for mead. We give a 
short paragraph on this subject in another 
page of the present number. 
A Virgin Queen may be removed from a 
colony of bees and a fertile queen introduced 
immediately, provided smoke is used in the 
operation. 
